Click it or ticket

The Needham Police will join more than 230 Massachusetts local police departments and the State Police in support of the Massachusetts Spring 2007 “Click It or Ticket” mobilization.

The Needham Police will join more than 230 Massachusetts local police departments and the State Police in support of the Massachusetts Spring 2007 “Click It or Ticket” mobilization. This statewide initiative combines extra traffic enforcement, public information and community outreach to reduce motor vehicle-related fatalities, injuries and economic loss.With $1.3 million in federal highway safety funds, the Executive Office of Public Safety will conduct this “Click It or Ticket” mobilization from May 14 to June 3. More than 12,000 law enforcement agencies will participate in similar Click It or Ticket efforts across the nation.Since its first “Click It or Ticket” mobilization in November 2002, Massachusetts has seen its safety belt use increase 16 percent to a record high of 67 percent in 2006. Massachusetts, however, still lags behind the 2006 national safety belt use rate of 81 percent.

Safety belt use reduces the risk of death or serious injuries in a motor vehicle crash by up to 50 percent. Increasing the use of safety belts, booster seats and child safety seats is one of the major ways to reduce the more than 400 fatalities, 5,000 serious injuries, and $6.3 billion in related costs from motor vehicle crashes each year in Massachusetts.